Would You Date My Daddy?
by Boo2020
Summary: Thanks to Trucy, Athena starts to realize all the ways in which Phoenix Wright is actually a pretty attractive dating option, and before she knows it she's nursing a huge crush on her much older boss.


A/N: I've been debating posting this story to FFN for a while but it got positive reviews on Tumblr and AO3 so I figured, why not? Be warned, it was for a request and is definitely not any of the typical ships I write about. There's obviously a huge age difference here, but both characters are of age and everything is consensual. If it's still not your thing, don't bother reading, and definitely don't bother commenting. Keep in mind this is one of those longer one shots that I could have written into a ten chapter fic, so if it seems rushed in places, that's why.

Also, I highly recommend my readers here start following me on Archive of Our Own if you don't already. I often find myself posting things here late or not at all. Not because I don't love my readers here but because it's such a pain posting to FFN compared to the ease of AO3 that sometimes I just can't be bothered, then I forget. You also don't get to read any of the TONS of smut that I write and exclusively post on AO3 (assuming you like reading smut). ;D

Sorry for the long author's note, here's the fic.

* * *

Athena feels incredibly guilty as she sneaks through the hallways of the Wright household, using Widget's holographic screen as her only source of light. She doesn't feel guilty because of what she's doing or who she's going to see, but because of the way she's going about it. She's supposed to be here with Trucy, having a girl's night and sleeping over, but instead all she's done the entire night is wait impatiently for Trucy to finally fall asleep so she can sneak out of the room.

When she finds the door she wants a little ways down the hallway, she knocks lightly, then enters without waiting for an answer. She tip-toes quietly over to the bed and peers down at the lump under the covers, wondering if he's actually asleep. He knew she was planning on coming, but it's later than she anticipated.

She takes Widget off and turns down the projecting light to a dull glow, then sets the alarm for 5 am. It's early enough that she should have enough time in the morning to get back to Trucy's room before Trucy realizes that she's gone. Once finished with that, she flips back the covers and crawls into the bed.

He shifts when he feels her movement and takes a deep breath in, rolling to his side to open his eyes sleepily. "Athena?"

She smiles at him as she settles herself down. "Hey," she whispers.

"You took long enough," he mumbles. "I thought you weren't coming."

She scoots closer to him, craving the warmth his arms provide as they wrap around her to pull her closer to his chest. She places a quick kiss on his cheek. "Sorry. She took forever to fall asleep."

He chuckles. "What if she catches us?"

She shrugs. "Then we'll just come clean. I was actually thinking, maybe we should start telling people now…"

He's quiet for a few seconds and she can sense his unease with her suggestion. "Not yet," he says finally, his hand running through her hair and caressing her back through the fabric of her pyjama top.

She sighs but doesn't push it. She can understand his hesitance to tell anyone about their relationship. After all, when your sorta kinda secret boyfriend is your best friend's dad, people are bound to judge you.

This is all Trucy's fault anyway, Athena thinks as nudges herself closer to him. If not for her, none of this would have happened.

* * *

 **THREE MONTHS AGO**

"Do you want some popcorn, Athena?"

"Sure, why not?"

Trucy pauses the movie they're watching and heads into the tiny kitchen of the apartment. A minute later, Athena hears the whirring of the microwave and the popping of the first few kernels. She lights up Widget's display to check the time. It's almost 10 pm. Just knowing how late it is seems to force a yawn out of her. Trucy is a good friend and Athena does enjoy hanging out with her, but the girl has far too much energy. Athena's used to 9 pm bedtimes so she can get up by 6 am to go for a run before starting her day each morning, but she knows that won't be happening tonight, not since she's agreed to stay the night.

"When's your dad going to get back, Trucy?" she calls. Once Phoenix gets home they'll most likely move to Trucy's bedroom where Athena can pass out on her bed, whether Trucy wants her to or not.

"I'm not sure," she hears Trucy's reply. "He's on a date! And it's getting pretty late so maybe it's going well."

"A date, huh?" she mumbles to herself. She knows that Trucy has been trying to get Phoenix a girlfriend for ages, but in the two years Athena has known him, he's never been in a relationship so far as she knows, so obviously Trucy hasn't been very successful.

She yawns again, leaning her head back on the couch and propping her feet up on the coffee table to await the arrival of the popcorn. Her eyes drift closed for a few minutes, and she only opens them again when she hears the front door opening. Phoenix announces his arrival by slamming the door shut and muttering something to himself about 'stupid pretty boy Edgeworth'.

Athena lifts her head. "Hey, Mr. Wright." She has her feet propped up on his coffee table as she slouches in front of the TV on his couch, but she doesn't bother moving. At first it was kind of strange, being best friend's with your boss's daughter and hanging out at his home after hours, but they've gotten used to it.

"Hi Athena," he says. His jacket is already off and he's halfway through untying his tie before he makes it to the couch to flop down beside her tiredly. He throws the tie across the room where it flutters onto an armchair. It doesn't surprise her anymore how different he can be at home, where he doesn't need to be The Boss.

"How was your date?" she asks, though she can already tell that it hasn't gone well.

"I don't think I'll be seeing that woman again," he tells her.

"Why? Did something happen?"

He lowers his voice. "Everything was actually pretty great until I mentioned that I was friends with the all mighty Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth. Suddenly that was all she cared about. It would have been fine if she kept it at a few questions but she wanted to know everything under the damn sun," he says. "I'm sorry, but I can't be interested in a woman who talks about another man for the entirety of a first date."

Athena nods sagely. "I get it, Boss. That _would_ be annoying. A first date is meant to get to know the person you're dating so if she wasn't showing much interest well… there are other fish in the sea."

He sighs. "Thanks. Trucy won't see it that way though."

At the mention of her name, Trucy appears again with a bowl of popcorn in her hands. "Daddy! You're home! How was your date?"

"Eh, not that great, Truce," he says. Athena makes note of how he doesn't tell her the whole story.

Her face falls. "Aw, so you won't see her again?"

"I doubt it."

"Hmph. Sometimes I think you don't even _want_ a girlfriend."

He shrugs. "I already have the only girl I'll ever need in my life right here, Truce."

She can't hide her smile at that. "Aaw, Daddy, don't embarrass me in front of Athena."

"I think it's sweet," Athena said. "And Mr. Wright shouldn't _have_ to have a girlfriend if he's already happy."

"Thank you, Athena! I've been telling her that for months."

Trucy frowns and leans down to take Athena by the wrist. "We're going to my room now. We can finish the movie in there."

"What, you don't want to hang out with your dear old dad some more, Trucy?" Phoenix says, mock hurt evident in his voice.

"Nope! This is a girl's night." She leans down to peck him on the cheek. "Night Daddy."

Inside her bedroom, Trucy sets the popcorn down with a thunk on her side table, causing some of the pieces to fall on the floor, then flops onto her bed. Athena drops into a bean bag chair in the corner of the room and looks at her. "What's wrong, Trucy?"

When she speaks, Athena can hear the disappointment in her voice. "I really want my Daddy to get a girlfriend," she mumbles into her pillow.

"Why though? I'm honestly curious. I know you want a mom and everything but Mr. Wright seems like a great dad, isn't he good enough? Besides hasn't Miss Fey been in your life for all these years?"

Trucy's feet kick against her bed. "This isn't about me wanting to be happy, I want _him_ to be happy. And yeah, but Miss Maya is more like a cool aunt than a mother figure. I used to think her and my dad would end up together, and Pearl is _still_ under that delusion, but I've realized recently that they're just friends. Best friends really, but that's it."

Athena purses her lips. "Maybe he's gay?"

Trucy thinks about that for a second. "Maybe, but why wouldn't he tell me if he was? He should know it wouldn't bother me. I'd just start bugging him for a second daddy instead."

"Maybe that's exactly the reason he doesn't tell you. Or maybe, and this is just a thought here Trucy, maybe he's already happy and doesn't feel like he needs to be in a relationship."

Trucy huffs and rolls to her side, propping herself up on an elbow. "Or maybe he's just not appealing enough. What do you think he could do to be more attractive?"

"W-What?" Athena stutters. "Why are you asking me?"

"Because you're the only girl I know who isn't related to him or someone he's already friendzoned. And I can't think of him _that_ way, he's my _dad."_

"Trucy, I really don't know."

"Come on," she prods, smiling a bit. "Do you think he's good looking at least? Or is that his problem?"

"Er… I mean… no, he's pretty good looking, I guess. I don't think that's his problem," Athena says, feeling her cheeks redden. She's never really thought about it before, but when she does, she supposes Phoenix _is_ kind of attractive, especially for an older guy.

Trucy giggles. "Let's say you were older. Would you date him if he asked you out?"

"Trucy. You're embarrassing me."

"Come ooon, I won't say anything."

Athena groans. "Fine… I guess I probably would."

"Why?" Trucy asks, sitting up on her bed to sit cross-legged. "What makes him dateable in your opinion? You know him, there has to be some part of his personality that you like."

Athena rolls her eyes. "Okay, he has a good job, he doesn't live in his parent's basement, he raised a really awesome daughter so I know he's a good dad," she says, smiling at Trucy. "That's a good quality to look for in someone you might want to have kids with someday."

Trucy returns her smile. "What else?"

Athena taps her fingers on her knees, thinking more seriously now. It's actually kind of fun, in a silly way, to think about Phoenix in this way when she's never really considered it before. "He's taken over my mentoring since Apollo left and Mr. Wright is way more understanding than Apollo," she says. "He's more patient and explains things better, which I kind of like. Plus obviously he's a really nice guy, given how much he cares about you and his friends and even his clients. And like I said before, he's not bad to look at by any means. When I first met him in Europe he still had that whole unshaven, messy, single dad look about him. I remember some of the girls at my school talking about how hot he was. I didn't really get it, I actually thought Mr. Edgeworth was more attractive," she says, laughing to herself. "I think I prefer him clean cut like now. He looks more professional that way."

Trucy nods seriously. "Alright so we know some good reasons someone might want to date my daddy. He's good looking, he's a lawyer, he's a good father, etcetera. Now why wouldn't you date him?"

"I usually like my guys a bit more athletic," Athena says right away. "And I guess… He sort of comes across as… how do I say this…"

"A pushover?" Trucy supplies.

Athena laughs. "Kind of, yeah. He lets us get away with _so much_ and I'd personally like a guy who's a little more take charge, you know?"

"Athena likes dominant men."

"Pfft. I guess I do."

Trucy giggles, then gets quiet. "Hey Athena… Have you, you know, done _it_ yet?"

Athena raises her eyebrows. "I won't lie, I have. In high school. It was never that good, you're not missing much." She grins. "I wonder what Mr. Wright is like when it comes to stuff like that."

"Ew, Athena," Trucy says, clapping her hands over her ears. "I don't want to talk about _that_."

"You're the one who got us onto this topic of conversation!" Athena protests.

"Changing the subject now!" Trucy says, hands still covering her ears.

The conversation veers away from Phoenix and his dateability to other more normal topics, until Athena passes out on Trucy's bed at some point in the early morning. When she leaves the next morning to go home and Phoenix smiles and waves at her from his spot at their tiny kitchen table, Athena finds herself looking forward to work on Monday more than usual.

* * *

The rest of her weekend is mostly uneventful. She hangs out with Simon at his apartment on Sunday and then goes home to catch up on the sleep she missed while at Trucy's. On Monday she wakes at her usual 6 am and goes for a run before coming home to take a shower and change. She spritzes a tiny bit of perfume that she usually saves for special occasions on her neck, and heads to the office.

Phoenix isn't there when she arrives, and she feels a pang of disappointment. There's a note on her desk though, so she stops to read it.

 _Athena,_

 _Ran out of coffee for the machine. Went to get some. I'll bring you back a cup. :)_

 _\- Phoenix_

She sets the note back down and falls into her chair, smiling. It's funny that he signs his first name, when all she ever calls him is Mr. Wright or Boss. She wonders what it would be like to be on such familiar terms with him; to call him by his first name as a close friend rather than an employee. Miss Fey and a few of his other friends even have the privilege of using his nickname, but Athena would never call him that unless he told her to. She starts up her computer and pulls out some of the files she's been working on. Her last trial concluded the previous Friday, and she still has plenty of paper work to fill out.

When Phoenix finally makes it back to the office he's holding two coffee cups in a tray in one hand and talking on his phone with the other. He doesn't even greet her when he walks in, just plunks her coffee in front of her. He's too preoccupied with his phone conversation. Athena can't help listening in.

"Uh, yeah sure… No that's okay, we can see how it goes. Tonight? Yeah tonight is okay. My daughter will be glad….. okay, I'll see you later. Bye."

He hangs up and sits down, finally looking up at her. "Sorry about that Athena. I hope I got your coffee order right."

"Yeah, you did. Thanks for grabbing it. Who were you talking to?"

"Oh, it was that woman from the other night."

"The one who talked about Mr. Edgeworth all night?" she asks. She's not one to deny her emotions, she knows that what she's suddenly feeling is jealousy.

He nods. "Yeah, she actually apologized for that. So we're going to go out again tonight."

"Hm."

He raises an eyebrow. "What? Not a good idea?"

Athena shrugs. "I don't know. I'm just not sure I'd give someone like that a second chance. What if she just wants to get close to you because she thinks she'll have a better chance of meeting Mr. Edgeworth that way?"

Phoenix smiles. "Good point. I'm not that worried though. It's just one date. It'll make Trucy happy and if I get any weird feelings I'll call it off."

"You shouldn't go out with someone just to make Trucy happy," she blurts.

He looks a little surprised. "I know. But like I said, it's one date. It's hard enough for me to find women who are interested; I'll take what I can get."

"Don't put yourself down like that, Boss. You've got more going for you than you think."

He snorts like she's told a funny joke, and looks down at his work, seemingly done with the conversation. Athena looks back down at her own paperwork, but suddenly feels like she can't concentrate on it.

"Hey Mr. Wright, can you help me word this part of my files better? It doesn't sound as professional as I'd like."

He nods and gets up just as she predicted he would. He reminds her of her teachers back in high school who would lean over her desk to look at her work. He doesn't do it to be creepy or intimidating and it doesn't come across that way, she just thinks he can figure things out better himself if he can actually see what she needs 'help' with. She's comfortable with his presence anyway, so it doesn't bother her. In fact, when he leans down and the scent of his aftershave reaches her nose, she finds she's enjoying the closeness. The scent is pleasant, so much unlike the boys she knew in school who would spray what seemed like an entire can's worth of AXE body spray on themselves every morning.

It reminds her that Phoenix is a _man._ A much older man. Yet somehow that just makes him all the more attractive to her. He's not one of those grody teenagers or twenty-somethings that always hit on her and think they're hot shit. She may only be nineteen, but she's already a successful career woman. She has no interest in those kinds of guys. She needs someone more mature.

When she realizes that her thoughts have run away on her and that Phoenix is speaking and she has no idea what he's saying, she silently curses Trucy's 'would you date my daddy?' conversation from the other night. Without even realizing it she's developed a crush on her boss overnight. A crush on Mr. Wright, of all people. A guy who for the last two years she only saw as her employer and friend, and her best friend's dad. Now here she is, fantasizing about actually _being_ with him, and finding herself jealous that he's dating other women.

She bites her lip as she watches his finger move across her page. He's still saying something and she tries to focus back on his voice, only to realize how _cute_ he sounds. Has he always sounded so incredibly dorky and adorable?

"Athena…?"

"Huh?!"

"Do you get what I mean? About how to word this part?"

"O-Oh," she stutters. "Yes, I think so." She doesn't, but only because she hasn't been listening. Not that she really needed his help in the first place, it was more an excuse to be close to him. She'll be able to figure it out on her own no problem.

"Is something wrong?" he asks, finally moving away from her. She's half relieved and half disappointed. At least now she can concentrate.

"No, I'm fine," she tells him. "Do you mind if I turn on the radio? You know how my hearing is, I can't concentrate if it's too quiet."

He nods. "Yeah of course, go ahead."

She reaches for it, but then turns back to him anyway. "Actually, can I ask you something? It's sort of personal."

"I guess so," he says. She can hear the slight hesitance in his voice.

"Do you even _want_ a girlfriend? Trucy doesn't seem to think so. Is she right?"

He raises an eyebrow at the question. "Let's just say it's not really a priority for me, but I'm glad to go on a few dates if it keeps her off my back about getting her a new mommy. She already has plenty of great female role models, like Maya, and Ema, and even you, so I'm not too worried about it."

"Even me?" she asks, surprised that he's included her in that list.

He nods. "Yeah. I know you're not even much older than her but you've had a lot more life experience. If she ends up anything like you once she's _really_ decided what she wants to do with her life, I'll know I did a good job raising her."

Athena smiles to herself. He really thinks that highly of her? That he would want his own daughter to be like her? "Thanks, Mr. Wright. That means a lot coming from you."

"You're welcome, Athena," he says, going back to his work.

A little later that day a client comes in and asks for Phoenix. He's always first choice when new clients come in looking for help. Apparently the man's wife was accused of murdering a co-worker, though he believes she's innocent, and wants Phoenix's help. There's a good possibility that she won't see him again before the end of the day, so she wishes him luck on his date before he leaves to head to the Detention Centre, and finds that she doesn't really mean it.

* * *

Athena gets to work before Phoenix for the second day in a row, and is finished the last of her paperwork early. All she does after that is wander around the office, tidying up and dancing around to the radio she keeps on her desk. When Phoenix finally does make it into the office, he looks tired and even slightly dishevelled. Athena feels another pang of jealousy, wondering if maybe his date last night went a little too well.

"Hey Boss. How'd it go last night?" she inquires innocently, moving to stand in front of his desk as he sits down at it.

He sighs and rubs at his face. "Uh, to be honest, not well."

Athena feels bad about how happy she is to hear this, but puts on her best sympathetic expression. "Sorry to hear that. Wanna talk about it? I'm a good listener."

He shakes his head. "No, it's fine."

"Boss, you should know by now that you can't lie to me about feelings. You're actually kind of upset by this."

"I wouldn't say I'm upset. More like… disappointed?"

"But I thought you said this wasn't a priority?"

"It's not."

"So what's the big deal?"

He looks down at the top of his desk. "No offense, Athena, but I'd rather not talk to my employee about this."

"Aren't I your friend too? Talk to me like a friend."

He grumbles to himself for a second, then looks up at her. "Am I really _that_ unappealing, Athena?" he blurts. His eyes widen when he realizes what he's said, and waves his hands at her. "Wait, don't answer that. I shouldn't have asked you, that's not a workplace appropriate topic of conversation."

"Boss," she says, planting her hands on his desk and leaning over it, wishing she'd had the foresight to undo a few more buttons on her blouse, "let me just say, as a woman, I think you're very appealing."

He chuckles at that. "Thanks, Athena."

She straightens up and puts her hands on her hips, a little annoyed that he's not taking her seriously. "I'm serious, Mr. Wright. If I were ten years older I'd be _happy_ if you asked me out… Hell, I'd date you _now_." He raises an eyebrow and smiles, but he looks unsure of the direction this conversation has taken. Athena doesn't give him a chance to say anything. "Let me give you some advice, Boss. Women like confident men, first off. So stop moping, there are plenty of other women out there who'd be lucky to date you. Secondly, you need to be more aggressive!"

"Uuh, aggressive?"

"I don't mean in a mean way, I mean like, you need to take initiative! Go out there and ask someone out, the worst that will happen is they say no. So what? Move on to the next. But if they do say yes make sure you follow through! If you go out a few times and you really like her, make a move! Don't wait for her to do it. But at the same time try to be a little sensitive, women don't like men who act all macho all the time."

He's nodding along with her but looks confused, and Athena huffs. "Okay Boss. Ask me out."

"What?"

"Ask me out the way you'd ask anyone out."

"I don't think so—"

"Come on," she says. "It's just us here. I promise I won't slap you with a sexual harassment lawsuit."

He sighs and swipes a hand through his hair. "Fine. I'm so bad at this when I haven't rehearsed ten times in front of the mirror."

She giggles, but quiets herself when he scowls at her. "Well, be spontaneous! That's another thing women like."

"Athena, if you're not busy do you want to maybe get coffee sometime?"

Athena grins. "See! That's all you have to do. And yes I would love that actually," she says, smiling teasingly.

"Ha ha. Okay I can do that but it's the whole _keeping_ them interested thing I have trouble with."

"We can work on that," Athena tells him. "I'll help you out."

* * *

It takes a bit of convincing on her part. Phoenix is adamant that he doesn't need her help, but she insists, and he finally relents. She gets the feeling it's only to entertain her, that he doesn't think anything will actually come of it, but Athena is determined to take this seriously. For three weeks she tells herself she's doing it only out of the goodness of her heart, because despite the jealousy she felt before, she still feels bad that Phoenix feels so unlovable, so she's willing to put jealousy aside to help him out.

Except the more often they spend time together outside of work, under this guise of Athena helping him pick up women as his wing woman, the more she realizes this little crush of hers is growing and starting to resemble actual romantic feelings; feelings she thinks he may be starting to reciprocate, even if he doesn't know it yet. Her special sense of hearing is able to pick up on even subconscious inflections in people's voices, and to her it's noticeable the way his voice has changed from amiable and professional to a softer and more tender way of speaking, even slipping sometimes into teasingly flirtatious at times. She can't help wondering why on earth someone wouldn't fall for him after spending so much time with him, because that's exactly what she's doing.

Soon enough she's not doing this out of the goodness of her heart and the time they spend together outside of work starts to veer away from the original reason they started doing so. Now when they go out, she no longer pretends to be looking for prospective future girlfriends for him, and he no longer pretends to care about finding one. Instead they sit in coffee shops talking and laughing and when the waitress smiles awkwardly at them, unsure whether they're there as father and daughter or boyfriend and girlfriend, neither of them pays her any attention.

When they leave that same coffee shop on Friday night of the third week and he rests his hand on the small of her back, she feels a shiver go through her.

She doesn't see Phoenix that weekend, and when he comes into the office on Monday morning he doesn't even greet her.

"Good morning, Boss," she says.

He stops a few feet from her and turns around to smile, but it looks forced to her. "Hey Athena."

She lifts an eyebrow at the tone of his voice. It sounds tense. "Hey, I was wondering if tonight you wanted to go somewhere a little different—"

"No," he says right away. "Sorry… I can't tonight. Maybe not for the next few nights."

"Oh. Why?"

He scratches at his neck nervously. "I'm just busy."

She smiles sadly. "Did you finally find someone else to go out with?"

"No," he says hesitantly. He shakes his head and sighs. "Athena, I have to be honest with you."

"Okay?"

"I don't really know how to say this. Um, I think we need to stop _this_ ," he says, gesturing to the space between them.

She smiles. "Why? We're only friends. You're allowed to hang out with your co-workers outside of work you know—"

"No," he interrupts. "Athena, we both know where this is headed," he says, cutting to the chase. So he has been feeling the same way as her. "You're too young for me."

She gets up from her chair quickly and frowns at him. "No I'm not. I'm not a little girl," she says, closing the space between them quickly, and happy that he doesn't try to step back. "You have to stop seeing me that way."

"You're _not_ a little girl, believe me I can see that. But still. You're my employee. It's inappropriate and I can't just keep pretending that all this time we've been spending together is just as friends, because it doesn't feel that way anymore, not to me."

She stares up at him. "It doesn't feel that way to me anymore either. And you're not following my advice."

He furrows his eyebrows. "Advice?"

"About making the first move," she says quietly, taking another step towards him. She's so close that she can see the movement of his throat as he swallows nervously. "Make the first move," she whispers.

She thinks he's going to reject her again, and decides that if he does she'll give it up, but he doesn't. He hesitates for only a second, but then she can see the look in his eyes change to something more decisive, and instead he leans down the few extra inches he has on her and quickly closes the space between them to press his lips against hers gently.

She's so happy that she has a difficult time not smiling against his lips. She lifts her hands to wrap them around his neck as she kisses him back. They pull apart only for a second, and she whispers, "be more aggressive" to him.

His arms wrap around her waist and she finds him turning with her in his arms, then stepping forward to press her back against the wall, kissing deeper and harder than before, one hand on the back of her neck and the other on her hip. She playfully sweeps her tongue along his bottom lip, inviting him in. He takes the invitation and lets his own tongue touch hers tentatively.

She slides her hands from his neck down to the lapels of his jacket to pull him impossibly close to her as one of his hands slides under her ear and into her hair where it sneaks up to the ribbon and pulls on it to let her long red hair tumble from her ponytail.

He breaks the kiss with a start, and Athena opens her eyes to look up into his. She's never noticed before how deep and dark blue they are. "What's wrong?" she murmurs.

He blinks at her, and then steps back. "I'm sorry, Athena. I got carried away." The emotions in his voice take such an abrupt turn from the relative calm and contentment she felt during the kiss. Now he sounds scared and guilty and even confused. "I shouldn't have done that," he says.

He moves further away from her and starts to go back towards his desk, but he stops in front of it, unsure how to proceed. "Um. You can take the rest of the day off."

She stays where she is, her back still pressed against the wall, the taste of him still on her lips. "Mr. Wright. It's okay, I'm fine. You didn't do anything I didn't want you to do."

He turns to look at her again. "Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure." She moves away from the wall to approach him again, reaching out to touch his arm. "Really. You haven't done anything wrong. You didn't coerce me, you didn't threaten me."

"It _feels_ wrong," he mumbles.

"Mr. Wright, I need you to see me as a woman who can make her own decisions. I know I'm young, at least compared to you," she says with a grin, "but I know what I want, and I trust you."

"What _do_ you want, Athena?"

She steps closer, pulling on his wrists to wrap his arms back around her waist. "I want you."

His arms tighten around her, pulling her against him. "I kind of wish you hadn't said that," he says, dipping his face to hers to capture her lips again.

* * *

For two months they sneak around, not telling anyone about their relationship. Athena wants to tell people, but Phoenix doesn't, and she wouldn't betray him like that. She knows what people will say about him for being with someone so young, an employee no less, and she also knows what people will say about her for being with someone so much older, particularly her own boss. She doesn't care what other people think, but Phoenix does, so she has to care too.

They make the most out of their time alone in the office, flirting constantly and sneaking kisses when they're absolutely sure no one is going to walk in and catch them in the act. The only other time they're able to really be affectionate around each other is every few nights, when Phoenix tells Trucy he's going out on a date. Technically he's not lying, but instead of meeting up with someone for coffee or dinner or a movie, he goes to Athena's apartment.

They usually make dinner, eat, and watch a movie. Most nights they forget about the movie and start to share kisses until it's late and he insists on going home. The rare times he does stay the night, they never have sex. He always puts a stop to that as soon as their kisses get too frantic and wanting, or when Athena's hands start to slide to places he's not comfortable with. It's not like she does it on purpose, but she gets caught up in the moment, and finds herself wanting to touch all of him, wanting to explore him and wanting him to explore her. It frustrates her a little that they can sleep in the same bed, they can kiss and caress and cuddle together under the blankets, but he refuses to go further than that. It makes her think that he still sees her as being too young, but they've already done so much, she doesn't see how going all the way would make much of a difference. She wants more, and she wants him to realize that it's okay.

But their relationship continues the same way until the night Trucy invites Athena over for another girl's night, and Athena tells Phoenix to stay awake until she can sneak to his room to see him.

* * *

Now here she is, for the first time in _his_ bed, in _his_ apartment, with her best friend—his _daughter_ , just two years younger than Athena herself _—_ sleeping in her room just down the hall. To Athena, that's the only thing wrong with this situation. She hates hiding it from Trucy. She hates hiding it from _everyone,_ but Trucy most of all. And yet Trucy is the one person she's scared of telling. Who knows how she'll react, it's a weird situation for sure.

Phoenix is half asleep again, but Athena can't help pressing her lips against his jaw to wake him again. 'Thena," he mumbles, "I need to sleep."

"Stay up with me a little longer," she murmurs. "Please?"

He groans. "I'm so tired though. I was out at a crime scene half the day."

She shrugs and rolls away from him, onto her back. "I guess this is what I get when I decide to go out with an older guy. He can't keep up with me."

"Very funny," he says, opening an eye halfway.

She stifles a laugh. "Just saying. It's true."

He pushes himself up onto an elbow and leans over her. "Stop being mean to me."

"Make me."

He attacks her with kisses, climbing over top of her to pin her down. She laughs, trying not to be too loud. How awkward it would be if they woke Trucy this way. She pushes on his chest, but he's too heavy even for her, so instead she slinks her hand down his chest and past his stomach. He stops kissing her right away and lifts his head with a disapproving look. "Athena, no."

She pouts, but moves her hand to wrap her arms around his neck instead. "When?"

He sighs. "I don't know."

"At least tell me we will eventually. We're not going to be celibate forever, right?"

"Of course not. Just wait for now."

There it is again. That pang of guilt in his voice as he moves away from her to lay back down. She sits up. "Mr. Wright, this is still about how young I am, isn't it?"

"You're still calling me 'Mr. Wright', Athena. Of course it is."

She curses herself for being so formal. She's just used to it; that and 'Boss'. She leans down to his ear. "Then what would you rather I call you? Phoenix? Or… Nick? I know that's what Miss Fey calls you…"

"Mm. Call me whatever you want."

"Okay… _Nick._ There, first name basis. I figure, your closest friends call you Nick. Your girlfriend probably should too. Though honestly, I would have thought that me calling you 'Boss' in bed would've been a turn on—"

"Athena," he grumbles.

"Sorry… But you know, it wouldn't be my first time," she says. "It's not like you'd be taking my innocence or whatever you might be thinking that's making you feel so guilty. I know how to do it, and I know how to do it well."

In the dim glow still emitting from Widget she can just faintly make out the rolling of his eyes, but is glad to see that he's smiling too, instead of getting mad at her for pushing it. "Even if I said yes, there's no way we can do it here with Trucy just down the hall."

She tilts her head at him, smiling coyly. "I can be pretty quiet, and she was practically dead to the world when I left her room. And your bed _is_ much bigger than mine."

This time he doesn't reply, and she reaches out to touch his shoulder, running her hand across it and down his chest. He watches her with sleepy eyes, but she takes his silence as permission to continue, so she clambers on top of him before he can tell her not to, and leans down to kiss him.

He wraps his arm around her back and squeezes her against him. He breaks the kiss first. "Athena… What if she hears?"

"She won't," she reassures. "I know you want this. I can _feel_ how much you want this," she says, grinding her hips against his.

He closes his eyes. "Athena, you don't even _know_ how much I want this."

She lifts her head to gaze down at him. "Then that's all that matters. As long as you want this, and I want this, it's okay. You have no reason to feel guilty." She kisses him again, deeper, trying to convey to him that it's okay, that _she's_ okay.

His hands run down her sides to rest on her hips and hers find their way under the hem of his t-shirt to touch his skin. He sighs into her mouth. "'Thena," he mumbles around the kiss.

She pulls back. "Yeah?"

"The drawer…"

She doesn't understand at first, and he gives her a look that clearly says 'if you can't figure out what I mean we shouldn't be doing this', but she does, and she grins at him. "So you're prepared."

He shrugs. "Hey, I _did_ date a few women before you."

She reaches over him for the drawer and pulls out a box of condoms, then raises her eyebrow. "Yeah you were dating, but this box isn't even open."

He chuckles. "Yeah, I didn't get lucky too often."

"Poor you," she says, pulling out what she needs and setting the box back down. She settles herself back down on top of him. She doesn't get nervous often, but now there's a tiny butterfly fluttering in her stomach.

She ignores it and leans down to continue their kiss, and when his hands finally find their way under her shirt, she smiles against his lips.

* * *

When Widget's alarm begins to sound in the morning, Athena groans and untangles herself from Phoenix's arms. He hardly stirs, and she has to wonder how he ever makes it to work on time if even Widget's alarm isn't waking him. Maybe Trucy wakes him up every morning.

That thought is enough to get her moving quicker as she hops out of bed and finds her clothes on the floor. She hurriedly pulls them back on. She needs to get back to Trucy's room and back in bed before Trucy wakes up and wonders where she is. Athena quietly makes her way back down the hall and into Trucy's room successfully. She'll be able to get a few more hours of sleep here if she's lucky.

A few hours later Trucy nudges her awake. "Athena, let's go get breakfast."

Athena rolls over and buries her face in her pillow. She's gotten maybe five hours of sleep, between staying up late enough to wait for Trucy to fall asleep, the rigorous _activities_ she and Phoenix had partaken in once she made it to his bedroom, and waking up early to get back to Trucy's room after. She forces herself out of bed though. She is kind of hungry, probably from all that exercise the night before, she thinks smugly to herself, so she follows Trucy to the small kitchen.

Trucy starts to pull out cereal. It's a simple breakfast but neither of them feel much like cooking. Trucy turns the coffeemaker on, but Athena goes for orange juice instead.

"Hey Trucy," Athena asks. "When does your dad usually get up?" She hasn't noticed him so he must not be awake yet, even though they're nearing 9 am.

Trucy rolls her eyes. "He sleeps in on his days off. Like, _really_ sleeps in. Like we probably won't see him for another hour or two."

Athena nods thoughtfully. What she wouldn't do to be in there with him, still asleep and warm in his comfy bed. Much comfier than Trucy's bed at least.

Trucy is right. Phoenix doesn't make an appearance until almost two hours later, when Athena and Trucy are sat watching a boring rerun of an old forensic investigations TV show. Normally Athena would leave early in the morning, but today Trucy has begged her to hang out a bit longer, and Athena secretly wants to see Phoenix once more before going home for the rest of the weekend.

She hears him first, heading down the hall past the living room where they are to the kitchen instead, then smells the telltale scent of coffee. A few minutes later he comes into the living room.

"Hey girls," he says, stifling a yawn. Athena has to internally cringe. It's so weird how he still treats her like a kid in front of Trucy, despite everything that happened last night.

Athena has to stop herself from giggling when Trucy gasps. "Daddy!" she hisses. "Put some clothes on. We still have a guest."

Phoenix looks down at himself. He's wearing pyjama bottoms but nothing else. "Oh, right. Sorry about that Athena," he says, looking at her dead in the eye with a perfectly straight face. "Probably not something you needed to see." He walks away slowly, coffee still in hand.

Trucy turns to her. "I'm so sorry, Athena," she says. She's embarrassed, Athena can tell. "He's kind of like a zombie in the morning no matter how late he sleeps in. I guess I should be glad he was at least wearing pants," she mumbles.

Athena snickers. "You know, Trucy, remember way back when you asked me about the reasons I wouldn't date your dad and I said I liked my men more athletic? I'm pretty sure your dad actually qualifies, I just didn't realize it until now. He looks good for a guy in his mid thirties." She makes note that he also qualifies under her 'needs to take charge' quality too, though apparently only in the bedroom. That was a surprising but not at all unpleasant discovery.

Trucy makes a face at her. "Stop ogling my daddy, Athena." Athena laughs. If only she knew.

When Phoenix makes it back into the room he's dressed more appropriately, and takes a seat in the arm chair. "So how did you girls sleep?" he asks. His gaze lingers longer on Athena, and she has to hide her smile.

"Pretty good," Trucy says. "For once Athena stayed on her side of the bed. I didn't wake up once all night and no offense Athena, you're usually a pretty terrible person to sleep with. You kick in your sleep."

"I guess I was just super tired last night," she says, shrugging.

"How was _your_ sleep, Athena?" Phoenix asks. "Were you comfortable enough? Trucy didn't hog the blankets did she?"

Athena shakes her head. "No… I slept amazingly well. Better I think than I even do at home."

He smiles. "Good."

"What about you Ni— er, Mr. Wright?"

"Better than I have in years," he answers.

* * *

Even though they've finally taken the next step in their relationship, it still stays a secret. It's getting harder and harder to _keep_ hidden though, especially since they've finally given up pretending to be nothing but co-workers or friends when they go out for lunch or to dinner together. Los Angeles is a big city, and the odds that someone they might know will see them are too small for them to bother worrying about it.

Another month into their relationship, Phoenix tells Trucy that he has a girlfriend. They've moved past the dating aspect and are exclusive. He refrains from telling Trucy anything about her, but Trucy is relentless. She really wants to know who this new woman is and whether or not she's going to be her new mommy.

When Phoenix tells that to Athena as they're lying in her bed together one night, she laughs. "I don't think I'll ever be her mommy. I don't _want_ to be her mommy. But she is my friend. I really hope she doesn't mind when we tell her."

He strokes the bare skin of her back. "Trucy's pretty understanding about things. I'm sure she'll be okay with it. It'll be weird at first, yeah, but she'll get used to it."

Athena nods. "You sound less nervous about her finding out."

"I'm warming up to the idea. I'm getting tired of pretending I don't love you."

The smile that spreads across her face is so wide, she has to hide her face behind her hands. "You've never said that before," she says.

He hugs her tightly. "I know."

"I love you too, you know," she whispers.

"Mm. I know."

They go into work together the next day, only to find Trucy sitting on one of the couches, her legs crossed and looking exactly like Athena would picture an evil queen in some sort of fairytale movie. Athena and Phoenix automatically distance themselves from each other.

"Daddy. I need to ask you something important," she says.

Athena looks at him worriedly. "Okay. I'll just go into the other room for now to give you two some privacy—"

"No," Trucy interrupts. "You can stay."

She swallows nervously, but takes a seat beside Phoenix on the other couch, across from Trucy. "What is it, sweetheart?" he asks. He always seems to revert to the pet names when Trucy's in a bad mood.

"I just need to know one thing," Trucy says, leaning forward slightly. She looks at each of them in turn. When she speaks next her voice sounds less threatening and more genuinely curious. "Is Athena going to be my new mommy? Because honestly, even _I_ think that'd be a little weird."

There's silence from both Athena and Phoenix. "Um… What?" Phoenix says. "What makes you say that, Truce?"

Trucy purses her lips. "You've been refusing to tell me anything about this supposed girlfriend of yours. I thought maybe you were lying and didn't actually have a girlfriend, but you were still going _somewhere_ every other night. I might have sort of… followed you last night."

"Trucy!"

"I'm sorry, Daddy! I just really wanted to see the lady you were dating. And I saw you go to Athena's apartment… I thought maybe you were just dropping something off or telling her something about one of your cases but you never came back out so I went home. Then you both show up here at the same time today." Her lip begins to quiver slightly. "You can tell me. I just want to know the truth."

Phoenix starts to protest, but Athena puts a hand on his arm and shakes her head. "No, Nick. She should know."

Trucy looks surprised at her casual use of his nickname. "So you two really are…?"

Athena nods. "Yes."

"For how long?"

Athena looks at Phoenix, who shrugs. "I think maybe four months?" he guesses.

" _Four months_?!" Trucy exclaims.

"I'm really sorry we didn't tell you sooner Truce," he says. "But you can understand why, can't you?"

She sits back on the couch with a pout and nods. "Yeah. I can. But I still wish you would've told me at least." She presses a finger against her forehead. "Jeez, this is so weird. But if you make each other happy, then I guess I support you. But Athena, I don't think I'll ever be able to call you mommy."

Athena laughs. "I wouldn't expect you to. Nothing has to change between us. I'm still your friend… Your friend who just happens to be dating your dad." She looks at Phoenix. "That _is_ weird."

"Tell me one thing," Trucy says. "Why? What happened between you two that made this happen?"

"It's _your_ fault, Trucy," Athena blurts out.

Both Phoenix and Trucy turn to her. "How is it my fault?" Trucy asks, tiling her head to the side.

"I'd like to know that too," Phoenix says.

"The list," Athena says, avoiding Phoenix's eyes. She's actually embarrassed to admit that their stupid list is the reason for all of this. "The list we made after he came home that night from that bad date."

Trucy's mouth drops open and she smacks herself on the forehead with her palm. "Oh crap, it _was_ my fault."

"Uh, I'm lost," Phoenix says. "List? What?"

Trucy turns to him. "That night you came home from your date and said it didn't go well, I was sort of disappointed, so I asked Athena what you could do to be more appealing. We just ended up with a list of good reasons you should've been able to get a girlfriend. Oh man, I made Athena get a crush on my dad and now she's dating him."

Phoenix grins and turns to Athena. "Really?"

Athena nods. "It was just stuff I'd never really noticed before. Like how good of a dad you are, how patient and understanding you can be, how sweet… how you're actually really attractive physically. I couldn't stop thinking about it." He reaches over to take her hand and she smiles at him. "And then once we started spending more time together outside of work I realized how much more there is to you that I was missing. I fell for you hard."

Phoenix leans over to peck her on the lips and Trucy waves her hands. "Aaah no mushy stuff in front of me! At least not until I'm more used to the idea."

Athena smiles when he pulls away and looks down at their entwined hands. "Sorry, Trucy."

Trucy sighs. "You two love each other, huh?"

They both nod, and Trucy smiles. "Then I'm happy for you." Then she turns to Phoenix and grins evilly at him. "Just wait until I tell Prosecutor Blackquill. Hope you're a fast runner, Daddy."

Trucy gets up and runs for the phone, only to have Phoenix get up and chase her down before she can get to it. She laughs as he pulls her away by the waist. "I'm kidding! I wouldn't tell anyone without your permission first!"

Athena laughs from her spot on the couch. "Yeah… and I really think Simon is the last person we should tell. He's quite… protective."

Phoenix makes a face. "Ugh, I can just imagine all the flying knives."

"Oh no," Athena says, looking at him seriously. "He has a collection of swords too."


End file.
